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One of the biggest concerns SSI beneficiaries have about going to work is the possibility of losing Medicaid coverage. Section 1619(b) of the Social Security Act provides some protection for these beneficiaries. To qualify for continuing Medicaid coverage, a person must:

Have been eligible for an SSI cash payment for at least 1 month;

Still meet the disability requirement; and

Still meet all other non-disability SSI requirements; and

Need Medicaid benefits to continue to work; and

Have gross earnings that are insufficient to replace SSI, Medicaid and publicly funded attendant care services.

This means that SSI beneficiaries who have earnings too high for a SSI cash payment may be eligible for Medicaid if they meet the above requirements. SSA uses a threshold amount to measure whether a person’s earnings are high enough to replace his/her SSI and Medicaid benefits. This threshold is based on the:

amount of earnings which would cause SSI cash payments to stop in the person’s State; and

average Medicaid expenses in that State.

If a SSI beneficiary has gross earnings higher than the threshold amount for his/her State, SSA can figure an individual threshold amount if that person has:

We show the 2016 and 2015 threshold amounts for each State below for disabled and blind beneficiaries. (Please note that four states have separate threshold amounts for blind beneficiaries.) We usually update these amounts annually for the prior calendar year. These amounts continue in effect until replaced with the next year’s amounts when they become available.

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